


Vulcan Morning

by greenforsnow



Category: Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: Gen, Sehlats (Star Trek)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-24
Updated: 2019-12-24
Packaged: 2021-02-18 08:22:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21941101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greenforsnow/pseuds/greenforsnow
Summary: T'Pol makes a decision with the help of her sehlat
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15
Collections: Star Trek Secret Santa 2019





	Vulcan Morning

**Author's Note:**

> For [kaiju-kin](https://kaiju-kin.tumblr.com/) who requested T'Pol and her sehlat. I hope you enjoy this!
> 
> Written for Star Trek Secret Santa 2019
> 
> Timelines are hard and made harder by Vulcan lifespans. But we are just going to say that T'Pol had her pet sehlat when she moved to Earth.

T’Pol liked to rise while it was still dark— the coolness of the night still clinging to the air. There was a stillness and peace that was rare in their home. She wrapped her house robe tight around her, stepped into her slippers, and walked into the kitchen. She knew the hallways of her childhood home by the feel of the stone floor and knew the number of steps before each turn. Her sehlat Velekh followed behind her, the soft padding of his paws behind her was barely audible. 

This morning her father was off world again and she could tell by the lingering scent of Redspice broth, her mother’s preferred breakfast, that she had already left for the Academy. T’Pol was relieved. While the conversation with her mother about the job she had been offered on Earth the previous evening had not been an argument, it still had not been pleasant. Her mother had never shied away from sharing her opinions and when T’Pol had brought up the offer she had assumed she was asking for advice. She had made it quite clear she would not approve of T’Pol accepting the posting as an aide to Ambassador Soval. She made logical points against accepting the position, and T’Pol had sat quietly— unable to think of a response that did not sound emotional and selfish in contrast to her mother’s carefully considered points.

T’Pol allowed herself to take her time preparing breakfast— enjoying the repetition of the simple movements of shredding the turanu root while she thought about her plan for the day. Her morning was free from any obligation and the emotions she had not yet been able to identify from the previous day’s discussion felt close to the surface in her mind. She was grateful to have Velekh at her side. His head following her movements and his tail lazily flicking and curling around her ankles. It was almost as if he could tell what she needed— trained from years of her running to him, burrowing her face in his fur when her emotions had overwhelmed her mind and her gut and she wanted no one else to see her. 

The sun was starting to rise by the time she finished and sat down in front of her bowl of stewed vashoun grain. She put a plate of meat down in front of Velekh. Her mother scolded her for feeding him first— saying that an animal that eats before its master believes itself to be the master. T’Pol did not agree and disliked the implications of that the animals around them were somehow beneath them. She continued to feed Velekh first and eventually her mother stopped arguing with her. She liked the way he growled softly as he ate and placed his heavy head in her lap after he finished. T’Pol ate in silence— mentally filtering through a list of nearby gorges to find a place to spend the morning climbing. 

Velekh eagerly followed her through the courtyard to the aircraft, his excitement clear in his jaunty step and the alert flick of his tail. 

It was a tight fit getting Velekh into the aircraft these days— both he and T’Pol had grown considerably since their first time using the vehicle to escape the bustle of the city. However they managed to fit inside and with Velekh laying half on her lap, T’Pol steered them towards the rising sun and away from the city center. 

By the time they reached the gorge, the sun was higher in the sky and the heat of the day was starting to spread through the air. T’Pol took advantage of the last lingering moments of the night’s chill to climb hard for the first hour— her thoughts cleared by the simple physical exertion— focused on nothing except finding the next hand hold and the pleasant burning of her muscles working. Velekh climbed quickly and eagerly in front of her, even in his old age, his claws designed to steady him as he made his way up the stoneface. He circled back to make sure T’Pol was following, but was easily distracted by chasing insects and smelling for signs of larger prey. 

It was truly hot by the time they reached the plateau, the sun high in the sky. T’Pol sat down in the limited shade and tossed Velekh a piece of dried meat from her bag. With the effort of the climb behind her, it was becoming harder for her thoughts to stay focused or her emotions to stay controlled. She ran her hands through Velekh’s fur who let out a snort of air in response. 

“Velekh,” she said softly, “What am I going to do?” In truth, she had already written out a communication accepting the position. It had not made sense for her to delay sending it, but she had foolishly wanted to gain her mother’s support. She was no longer a child and had not been for some time. She did not need her mother’s approval, but moving to Earth would be a significant change and she had felt an irrational desire for her mother to endorse the move. 

Velekh put his paw in her lap and T’Pol ran her hands over it and began to pick out the pieces of plant life that had become stuck in the long fur. “I want to go,” she said quietly to the sehlat, as if testing the words out. He placed another paw on her lap in response so she could groom that as well. It was not the first time Velekh acted as a stand in for someone else as T’Pol practiced a difficult conversation. He just stared at her with bright eyes, but it often seemed to help. 

“I’ve been to many different worlds, but I have not fully immersed myself in them. The idea of residing on Earth is intriguing. I do not understand humans, but the chance to investigate and improve our relationship with them is appealing.” 

Velekh rolled over in the dust and exposed his stomach. T’Pol looked around at the deserted landscape before turning and letting her back relax against his side, her head resting on his back. An undignified position, yes. However, she already felt the emotions that had been threatening to come to the surface relax. In her childhood Velekh had always been her landing pad. His soft animal scent. His fur tickling the back of her neck. Feeling his breaths rise and fall underneath her. T’Pol sighed softly. She thought about all those moments where meditating failed or she was overwhelmed her thoughts scattered and refusing to stay in any form of order. Thought about the moments of peace with Velekh curled around her with his tail tapping against her-something solid and outside of herself. She could count the taps against her legs until she no longer felt untethered. 

Now, Velekh growled softly at a small rodent that scurried out of the brush, but made no move to attack it. In his youth, he would have sprang—leaving T’Pol laying on the desert floor, but today he seemed content to scare it, but not give chase. Or perhaps he sensed T’Pol’s unease. She knew it was evolutionarily beneficial for sehlats to be able to sense Vulcan’s states of minds as potential prey, but still the idea that Velekh was able to identify and react to her internal state, provided her with an illogical sense of comfort. 

Here, with only Velekh and the Vulcan sun for company it seemed clear what she was going to do. She would go to Earth. She would be able to protect and support Vulcan in this role. 

“I am going to do it,” she said into Velekh’s fur. This was so much of how she got her courage. Words spoken in experimentation to an animal who only ever showed her love. She turned to look at him and he blinked at her slowly in response. 

T’Pol stood slowly, steeling herself for the descent back down the gorge and the next step in her journey.

**Author's Note:**

> Velekh means "one surrounded by freedom" 
> 
> I found the name [here](https://kirshara.wordpress.com/2013/07/05/a-list-of-vulcan-names/)


End file.
